Oh Christmas tree...

Here's some more Christmas goodness (yeah, I got ALOT of time on my hands all of a sudden).

As I sit on the couch and flip though channels on the TV, finding nothing to watch as I fiddle with the rabbit ears to pull in a signal, I'm reminded of those days when I was younger and spending Christmas night with my family.

Playing with our shinny new pairs of socks and taking turns on the video games. We never had much growing up, but Christmas was always special. Even if we only got one gift each, or some years one gift to share among three brothers, or some years no gifts at all, it was still a time where we'd all be home and watching Christmas specials like Charlie Brown or Rudolf or Ernest Saves Christmas (when NBC still showed it and people knew who he was), eating the chocolate candies my mother would receive at the office party and cooking up some tasty Indian desserts or homemade pizza.

But the best part was always the Christmas tree. My parents had bought a fake tree after a Christmas while I was a baby and every year when we pulled it out it we'd make a day out of decorating it. Pulling out all the hand made ornaments we'd made in school, each of us taking a turn at trying to untangle the mess of lights, poking ourselves and getting cuts on the fake needles and sharp medal that housed those needles and all sorts of other mischief. It wasn't always easy putting that sucker together, but when we plugged it and turned off the lights in the room to watch the red, green, yellow and blue twinkles dance around, year after year, it was all worth it.

I miss it now.

This isn't my first Christmas away from home, and it probably won't be my last, but it still doesn't get any easier.

I was asking myself if I wanted a tree this year. But I just couldn't justify spending money I didn't have on one, plus I would be the only one to see it.

But still the urge to have something for the holidays was there, anything to not feel empty.

Until two days ago my only decoration was a velvet bow I had bought to place on a gift for a co-worker, when it didn't work out, I tacked it up on the wall. It was a little thing, but it made me feel good, made the room seem warm, made it feel like home, but I still thought about getting a tree each time I passed by a lot.

Sometimes I imagined that I would pull over and walk in to pick out a tree. "If I get a little one, it'll be okay, that won't cost much," I tried to rationalize it to myself. But each time I would start thinking about how I'd have to spend money on lights, ornaments and then I'd have nothing to put under it.

It just didn't make sense, but boy would it be nice.

Well then I got a package in the mail from a really awesome person. Someone who just seemed to know exactly what would make my Christmas.

Say hello to my tree.



I love my tree. :)

Now I'm going to go make some hot coco, put on a Christmas carol and sit under my tree, or at least put a toe under it anyway.

Merry Christmas everyone.